On War and Politics: The Battlefield inside Washington's Beltway

摘要

On War and Politics is a remarkable autobiography. It explores the life and professional careers of Arnold L. Punaro, a U.S. Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) major general and congressional insider; it also is a remarkable portrayal of the day-to-day workings of Congress and the Pentagon, so it will appeal to a broad range of readers interested in national-security affairs. Punaro spent over thirty-five years as a USMCR officer and worked closely with the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senator Samuel A. Nunn Jr. (D-GA), for almost twenty-four years. Nunn played an important role in almost every major piece of defense legislation and understood the intricacies of power politics inside the Beltway. Punaro grew up a devout Roman Catholic, and as a young boy entered the seminary to become a priest, but eventually left and attended Spring Hill College for his undergraduate degree. On graduation, he started talking to military recruiters to avoid the draft, because his father warned him, "You don't want to get drafted. You'll go to Asia as an infantryman, and there's nothing grand and glorious about war" (p. 18). Punaro was particularly impressed by the sharp uniform the Marine recruiter wore, so he decided to join the Corps.